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| Obligatory legal information: This site is copyright 1998-2007 Kevin Reichard/August Publications. All rights reserved. My wife is a lawyer, so she will come and chop off your hand in a legal fashion if you rip off this site in any form. All logos are the property of their respective owners. |
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Oriole Park at
Camden Yards / Baltimore Orioles
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for a larger photo)
| Year Opened | 1992 |
| Capacity | 48,876 |
| Architect | HOK Sport+Venue+Event |
| Dimensions | 333L, 364LC, 410C, 400RC, 373RC, 318R |
| Playing Surface | Grass |
| Last Visit | 2005 |
| Web Site | mlb.com |
| Online Broadcasts | Yes |
| Online Ticket Sales | Yes |
| Phone | 888/848-BIRD |
| Ticket Prices (2006) | Club Box (212-214, 256-260), $45; Club Box (204-210, 262-270), $40; Lower Box (6-14, 60-64), $40; Terrace Box (1-17, 55-65), $27; LF Lower Box (66-86), $27; LF Club Box (272-288), $25; Lower Res (19-53), $25; Upper Box (316-356), $20; LF Box (67-75), $20; Upper Box (306-312, 358-372), $18; Lower Res (4, 7-17, 55-75, 77-87), $15; EUTAW St. Res (90-98), $15; Upper Res (316-356), $15; LF Upper Box (374-388), $15; Upper Res (306-312, 360-364), $13; LF Upper Res (368-388), $9 |
| League | American League |
| Parking | Oriole Park is located directly north of M&T Bank Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens, and there are several parking lots located between the two facilities. These parking lots are accessible from the local freeway exits (just follow the signs). There are also private parking lots close to the ballpark. Still, parking in general vicinity is about average for a major-league facility, with most lots and ramps charging between $7 and $10. |
| Address/Directions | 333 W. Camden St., Baltimore. Oriole Park at Camden Yards is easily accessible via freeway, with routes clearly marked. There are a multitude of freeways and highways leading to Oriole Park, and we won’t pretend to offer insightful advice as to the best routes. Let’s just say we found the ballpark ridiculously easy to find. |
| Written by: | Kevin Reichard |
| Rating |  |
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Aficionados refer to the retro trend in ballparks: facilities designed to look old, typically with a brick exterior and lots of exposed steel and brick inside. Add a configuration designed solely for baseball (the heck with football), wide concourses, and some decorative touches evoking baseball’s rich past, and you have the perfect retro formula.
It’s a formula that’s been played out many times in the last ten years, ranging from Philadelphia to Seattle. Fans like it, teams like it, and while some decry it as becoming clichéd, the retro style is closely associated with the renaissance of baseball over the last two years.
Oriole Park at Camden
Yards is correctly hailed as a trendsetter in
ballpark design, the first retro ballpark in the
major leagues. (The trend actually began in the
minor leagues: Dunn Tire Park, the home of the
International League’s Buffalo Bisons, predates
Oriole Park with its retro design and downtown
location.) The retro look is perfectly aligned
with the surrounding Baltimore neighborhood – a
warehouse and historic train station on one side,
a residential neighborhood on the other – making
Oriole Park a must-visit for anyone who loves
baseball and ballparks.
We unwittingly hit upon the perfect itinerary for
experiencing the best of Oriole Park and the
surrounding area during our first visit to the
ballpark. Among the nearby row houses: the house
where George Herman Ruth was born, now a museum
and memorial to the Babe. Our primo parking spot
was a scant two blocks from the Babe Ruth Museum
(216 Emory St.;
sportslegendsatcamdenyards.com; 410/727-1539),
an appealing pit stop on the way to the ballpark.
After heading out of the museum, stroll by the Babe Ruth statue at the Eutaw Street entrance, shown above (take a close look at it, keeping in mind Babe was a lefty) and the aluminum monuments honored retired Orioles numbers before entering the ballpark at the Eutaw Street entrance, Gate H. (If you take the train to the ballpark, Gate H will be the closest entrance.) To your right is the scoreboard and the playing field; to your left are the warehouses formerly used to store goods transported on the B&O Railroad line. These warehouses have been converted to restaurants, bars, and offices.
As you walk along the concourse, take a close look at the cement underfoot and the walls of the warehouse. Embedded in the cement are markers commemorating where homers landed, listing the player, the team, the date, and the distance of the homer. Only one player has hit the warehouses on the fly: Seattle’s Ken Griffey Jr. did it during the Home Run Derby held before the 1993 All-Star Game with a 445-foot-blast. (You can find the marker below the Warehouse C sign.) True, it’s a tad contrived to count what is basically a batting-practice blast, but stand where the ball landed and you’ll be mightily impressed at Junior’s power. Also in the concourse: plaques honoring members of the Orioles Hall of Fame.
Also in the same general vicinity: Boog’s BBQ. It’s now de rigueur for former ballplayers to put their name to barbecue stands in new ballparks (i.e., Randy Jones, Greg Luzinski, Gorman Thomas, and Orlando Cepeda), but a) former Oriole John “Boog” Powell was the first, and b) he looks like someone who knows something about real barbecue, or at least what passes for barbecue in Maryland. (Indeed, Powell also runs a barbecue joint in nearby Ocean City.) You’ll find brisket, pulled pork, ribs, and turkey at Boog’s, served either as part of a platter or on a sandwich; expect a long line, but you can also expect to see Boog interacting with fans and signing autographs.
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In general, that corner of the ballpark is a popular gathering spot. One trait shared by retro ballparks – a trait that isn’t actually rooted in anything historical, by the way – is the emphasis on open spaces throughout the ballpark. At Oriole Park, there’s a huge standing-room area in right field: fans claim their turf and then camp out for the entire game. It’s actually not a great area for camping out – the wall is rather high – but that doesn’t seem to diminish the area’s popularity. Technically, the Orioles call this the Flag Court, with flags representing each American League team, arranged in the order of the standings.
This is also a good place to take stock of the ballpark. The influence of this ballpark cannot be understated. There were 14 classic ballparks built between 1909 and 1923 – Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, Ebbets Field, Shibe Park, and Forbes Field all fall within this group – and Oriole Park hearkens back to all of them to some degree. Look at the outfield fence. It’s not just an outfield fence: it’s made up of straight wall segments, the first ballpark since Ebbets Field to feature such an arrangement. (Think about it. Most ballparks feature curved outfield fences.) Concrete has been the construction material of choice for most 1950s and 1960s ballparks (the exception being County Stadium in Milwaukee), but Oriole Park is reminiscent of the classics by stressing steel as a structural material.
Also located in center field: the main scoreboard. The scoreboard is a rather modest affair, with a videoboard and a matrix display featuring in-game information. The more noteworthy things about the scoreboard are the decorative elements mounted on top. The doublesided analog clock, built in Maryland, can be viewed both inside and outside the ballpark, while the two weathervane Orioles show which way and to what degree the wind is blowing. Though it’s not marked at the ballpark, the center-field area was once home to Ruth’s Cafe, a saloon operated by Babe Ruth’s father.
Our perfect day ended with a walk back to the car
and a short drive over to Harborplace, the
shopping and dining experience near Oriole Park on
the city’s waterfront.
Going to Oriole Park for a weekend series and staying downtown is perhaps the perfect ballpark vacation for families. There are plenty of attractions in downtown and Inner Harbor to fill the time, and kids of all ages will love a game at Oriole Park. The ballpark may be retro, but the experience is decidedly modern – and mandatory for anyone who loves baseball and ballparks.
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